Canadian dollar and business outlook

Glacier FarmMedia | MarketsFarm — The Canadian dollar was holding steady relative to its United States counterpart Thursday morning.

At 9:17 a.m. CDT the Canadian dollar was trading at US$0.7214 or US$1=C$1.3862 which compares with Wednesday’s close of US$0.7209 or US$1=C$1.3871.

Canada’s economy saw muted growth in the first three months of the year, according to a report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, that predicts a significant contraction for the second quarter. The report estimated the country’s economy grew at an annualized rate of 0.8 per cent in the first quarter of the year but forecasts a 5.6 per cent contraction in the second quarter.

The TSX was up by 166.70 points at 9:17 CDT to trade at 24,472.68.

Crude oil was firm in early trade, with West Texas Intermediate crude oil up by 0.79 per cent at US$62.76 per barrel.